We've seen the transformational power of paint here at Apartment Therapy many, many times. And yet I am still awed when I see that, with a little paint on the cabinetry, an entire kitchen can be transformed ...
Kimberly, over at Restoration House, has slowly been rehabbing her kitchen over the past five years. She had already added a backsplash, switched out the countertop, and traded out the old appliances for new stainless steel units. The only thing holding this kitchen back was the dated, dark wood cabinets. Kimberly says she was nervous about taking the plunge in painting the cabinets so she actually left it up to her husband to start the project. With the cabinets painted, the kitchen appears much lighter and more modern and is also more congruous with the adjoining dining room.
You can see more photos and read all the details on this project on Kimberly's blog: Restoration House: Kitchen Makeover and Beach Find.
Images: Restoration House
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Comments (51)
another nail in the coffin for my current cabinets!
Hmmmmmm...
That was a good hmmmmmm...
That looks so much better. I live in an apartment with the most god-awful outdated brown PAINTED cabinets. I wish the landlords would take a style tip from me and paint them white atleast!
I love white kitchens, this looks great!
Is the wallpaper gone too? I liked it.
It looks stunning!
YAY!
SO much better. I will never understand the thinking that "natural wood" is better, no matter what the wood looks like, especially when I see the holdover from the '70s golden oak cabinets (as you can tell, I'm NOT a fan). Simple white, or even off white, is so classic, you just can't go wrong!
Ditto on the wallpaper..... but oh la la on rest of it!
Excellent! I've been eying my kitchen cabinets for some time and thought of refacing them...more expensive than I thought when I had someone come out to look at them. My final decision will be to have them painted, probably next year. I agree, a simple white is classic. Paint really makes a big difference!
Fabulous! I love how fresh and new it feels! What a change!
Excellent. However not all vintage wood cabinets are bad and need to be painted. It all depends on the kitchen and house. I have lovely oak cabinets and would not dream of painting them but this kitchen looks good.
it looks so good! do you know if you need a special paint or finish for canbinets?
Really love this!!
I did the same with mine. Mine were sturdy, but they had water damage that had been sealed in through the years, so paint was the was the most economical way to go.
Here is the before:http://www.flickr.com/photos/10255449@N00/2838271289/in/set-72157607747178647
and after: http://www.flickr.com/photos/10255449@N00/4977856988/in/set-72157607747178647
What a huge difference! Love a clean, white kitchen.
Oooh, dirce79, your kitchen is gorgeous! And I'm coveting your drawer pulls/handles. Are they Ikea or something else?
Further verification that a can of paint can completely make over a whole room.
dirce79, the person who owned my house before me used those handles when she remodeled. I really like them. She also put the hinges on the inside, which looks nice, but there's screwed into wood blocks that were then glued inside the cabinets... ? And now the doors are falling off. :/
Much, much better!
it certainly looks more modern and clean. @ medusa12120, yup - paint does do wonders.
Every time I see a story on AT about painted cupboards transforming a kitchen, I'm inspired (and envious). But can this be done with veneer cupboards? These before & afters seem to be on wood cupboards.
My kitchen cabinets were standard 80s oak-trimmed white veneer and I painted them (inspired by a kitchen seen here). I used Killz primer and then three coats of paint with sanding in between (Martha Stewart High Gloss) and they turned out well. Primer is key, I think!
The wallpaper is still to the left of the cupboards - check out this pic. Very pretty!
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-05P8WqPIjWA/Tb3uVODbsrI/AAAAAAAABaA/qyFsNBUn1Iw/s1600/DSC_0688.JPG
btw that's from her blog - if you click through to the post you can see additional pics. it really does look great.
simple and clean...yet a very big difference...
maureen
I've been contemplating either refinishing or painting my old pine cabinets for over 10 years now and this has me convinced. I'm going for the paint!
Wow. And the styling is beautiful. Love the hydrangeas.
@ rincoglionita - you are right, they are ikea lansa handles
@ stonecyffer - I am sorry to hear about your cab doors!! As much as I love diy, sometimes the scariest thing about owning a house is running into crazy diy solutions from the previous owner.
How perfectly yuppie. I'va always felt paint looks and feels cheap, unless there are glass doors. It's really just a trend... if I had it my way all kitchens would be rustic with dark-stained cherry cabinets and bronze knobs. But I guess I wish it was the late 1800s...
Not perfectly yuppie...just a cheaper solution that looks nice, overall.
We have the exact same cabinets & I've been debating painting them for YEARS. SOLD! SOLD! SOLD!
For veneer solutions, look into rustoleum cabinet transformations ...
Brava! Personally, I prefer either white or ivory kitchen cabinets. I find white kitchens to be timeless and bright and very easy to update.
Wow. Those were some tired looking cabinets before. They look fabulous in the after! And such a thrifty solution to get a whole new look. Love it!
The pictures above make the kitchen look sleek, stylish and just a little bit French. Scaling back the rather feminine wallpaper helped a lot.
Am I the only one who appreciates woodgrain? Everyone's kitchen should cater to their personal taste (& this kitchen does look very nice), but I would love a feature on keeping the cabinets & fixing up everything around them. Maybe there are some in the depths of the archives - off I go!
Miss the wallpaper too. Though nice make over.
wonderful makeover, the kitchen looks better in white. I prefer white or light colored kitchens. One thing tho, that microwave over the stove is a no-no. If you continue with your makeover, see if you can install a proper hoodie and move the microwave to another location (that is if you do cook)
Fabulous makeover: I am big fan of painted kitchen cabinets.
As for using woodgrain in the kitchen, only if they are of highest quality solid wood and custom-built. Those nasty, builder-grade stock cabinets in cheap wood veneer need to go...or at least get updated with paint.
LOL There's always the judgey person saying wood should NEVER be painted ever. Who cares about personal taste, right rahskir?
Personally, I prefer a bright kitchen. It makes me want to cook in it and eat what's been prepared there.
Great job on this one! It looks so inviting.
I love white kitchens. This is gorgeous!
@LaBelleProvince, you can paint ANYTHING with the right preparation. Fear not, if there's a substrate, there's a way to prime it.
Thanks very much, Medusa! Because of reading of AT posts, I got the courage to paint my kitchen backsplash tiles, with great success. The day of reckoning is coming for the cherry-red veneer cupboards.
@rahskir Because everyone wants to see your ugly dishes through your cupboard doors...wood isn't for everyone, and neither are glass doors. I love that Kimberly kept some original wallpaper to give her kitchen more character.
I love woodgrain but detest crappy veneer and quite cheerfully painted my kitchen cupboards. I used 100% latex the first time, on the recommendation of the paint store, but the second time used melamine with better results.
Why is the microwave over the stove a no no? I thought that was the purpose of buying an "over range microwave" ? These models have a fan/vent and a light for that purpose. These can be vented to the outside.
I prefer a white kitchen to natural wood also, just feel it looks so much brighter, which is how I want a kitchen too. I do love her wallpaper and subway tile backsplash too.
Absolutely gorgeous!
This makes me realise how much I prefer the brightness of a white or off-white kitchen. I also like the wallpaper in the first pic, Farrow & Ball? It'd be a nice addition to the new kitchen too!
Love it! Love it! Love it!
Aw, normally I'm totally on board with painting the wood cabinets white, but in this case I'm totally jealous and sad. I would *love* to have that wood tone. Mine look like that peanut-shaped putty colored candy and my BF doesn't want to "ruin" them by painting....